Muslims celebrate Eid, marking Ramadan's end

Muslims around the world are celebrating the Eid al-Fitr holiday, a time for family and feasting, to mark the end of the holy month of Ramadan and its daytime fasting.Businesses closed across the Muslim world, as people dressed up and visited relatives, enjoying their first daytime meals in a lunar month. Mosques hold special prayers at sunrise, and children are often given gifts or a special allowance.

The holiday lasts one to three days, and is eagerly anticipated after the month of fasting. During Ramadan, the faithful refrain from eating, drinking, smoking or sexual activity from dawn to dusk, with even a small sip of water enough to invalidate the fast, which is one of the five pillars of Islam.

For the world's 1.5 billion Muslims, Eid al-Fitr is second only to Eid al-Adha, which comes around two months later.

Ordinarily a festive occasion, this year' Eid comes after a month of attacks by Islamic extremists that killed more than 350 people in several countries, including a suicide truck bomb in Iraq that claimed at least 175 lives and a suicide bombing outside the Prophet Muhammad's mosque in Saudi Arabia, one of Islam's holiest sites.

Wars are raging in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Yemen, as tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran exacerbate political conflicts throughout the Middle East. The two powers have cast their rivalry in corrosive sectarian terms, with Saudi Arabia positioning itself as the champion of Islam's more numerous Sunnis and Iran claiming to lead the faith's minority Shiites.

In the disputed Kashmir region on Wednesday, Muslim protesters hurled stones at Indian police, who fired tear gas and pellets to disperse them.

Afghanistan Eid Al-Fitr

Afghans hug each other after offering Eid Al-Fitr prayers outside of Shah-e-Dushamshera mosque in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, July 6, 2016. The three-day holiday marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

Malaysia Muslim Eid

A Muslim girl looks out after morning prayer for Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan, at National Mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Wednesday, July 6, 2016. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)

Philippines Muslim Eid

Filipino Muslims gather at Manila's Rizal Park to mark the end of the Holy month of Ramadan known as Eid'l Fitr Wednesday, July 6, 2016 in Manila, Philippines. The Eid, one of the most important holidays in the Muslim world, is celebrated with prayers, picnics and family reunions.(AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)

Indonesia Muslim Eid

Indonesian Muslim men perform an Eid al-Fitr prayer to mark the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan at Sunda Kelapa port in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, July 6, 2016. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

Pakistan Eid al Fitr

Pakistani Muslims offer Eid al-Fitr prayers at a ground in Karachi, Pakistan, Wednesday, July 6, 2016. Eid al-Fitr marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, during which Muslims all over the world fast from sunrise to sunset. (AP Photo/Shakil Adil)

Sri Lanka Eid al Fitr

China Eid al Fitr

Muslim men wait for Eid al-Fitr prayers to begin at the oldest and largest Niujie mosque in Beijing, Wednesday, July 6, 2016. The Eid al-Fitr celebrations mark the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

India Kashmir Eid al Fitr

A Kashmiri Muslim youth throws exploded tear smoke shell on Indian policemen during a protest near an open area where they performed Eid prayers in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Wednesday, July 6, 2016. Indian forces used tear gas and pellet guns to disperse hundreds of stone-throwing protesters who took to the streets after Eid al-Fitr prayers on Wednesday in the Indian portion of Kashmir. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)

China Eid al Fitr

India Kashmir Eid al Fitr

Kashmiri Muslim protesters throw stones on Indian policemen during a protest near an open area where they performed Eid prayers in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Wednesday, July 6, 2016. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)

Greece Eid al Fitr

Sunni Muslims living in Greece pray on the first day of Eid al-Fitr prayers in Piraeus near Athens, Wednesday, July. 6, 2016. Muslims worldwide are celebrating Eid al-Fitr, marking the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

Mideast Yemen

A girl, center, sits between Yemeni worshippers attending Eid al-Fitr prayers that marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan on the first day of Eid al-Fitr in Sanaa, Yemen, Wednesday, July 6, 2016. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

Mideast Yemen

A Yemen girl displays her hands painted with henna paste as she attend Eid al-Fitr prayers that mark the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan on the first day of Eid al-Fitr in Sanaa, Yemen, Wednesday, July 6, 2016. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

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